Golf-club shaft.



J. P. COCHRANE & .I. PATRICK.

GOLF CLUB SHAFT.

APPLICATION FILED OCT. 12. I916.

0 am 0 0 M m & G F H a 6 5 3 INVENTORS Jivm ES PR/mn E G0 0 H ER NE JOHN PHTR/CK UNITED STATES PATENT OFFIE.

JAMES PRHTGLE G OCHRANE, 0F EDINBURGH, AND JOHN PATRICK, OF LEITH, SCOTLAND.

eons-cum SHAFT.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, JAMns PRINGLE COCHRANE and J OHN PATRICK, subjects of the King of Great Britain and Ireland, and residents, respectively, of Edinburgh, Scotland, and Leith, Scotland, have invented a certain new and useful Improved Golf-Club Shaft, of which the following is the specification.

This invention relates to built-up shafts for golf clubs; and has for its object to provide a shaft of this type in which the parts are so shaped and combined as to determine the flexibility of the shaft, it being rendered flexible in a plane at racticallyright angles to the plane of the ace of the head of the club, that is flexible in the direction in which the club is swung tostrike the golf ball and at the same time extremely rigid in the opposite plane, that is in the plane of the length of the head of the club. Thus a club is produced which, while it will not readily warp, has yet that desired amount of flexibility which most players prefer when driving or playing through the green, as they find it enables t em to geta longer ball than when using a club the shaft of which is rigid.

A golf-club shaft made according to the invention is built u of a number of parts,

the essential novel eature of the invention being one or more flat strips so combined with segmental sections as to determine the extent of flexibility of the shaft in the direction in which the club is swung. The fiat strip and the other parts are so shaped that the shaft as a whole is tapered as usual from the handle end downward, and the fiat strip may also be so tapered that it is thickest at the handle end. It may also be in two 'or more ieces in the direction of its thickness and of its breadth, or a slot may be cut in it, the outer 0 en end of the slot at the upper end of the shaft being closed by a plug. The parts are made to adhere together, as usual, by treating their meeting faces with any suitable adhesive, such as any of the known, liquid glues, and are held by a clamp or by a lashing of cord until the glue is set, the cord lashin being, if desired, retained on the shaft or a part or parts of its length. The segmental sections are of course of hickory or Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 4, 191?.

Application filed October 12, 1916. Serial No. 125,263.

like wood usually employed in making such shafts, and the fiat strips may be of the same Wood, or they may be of cane or the like.

The invention may be carried out in various ways. By way of illustration but not limitative, twelve examples are shown on an accompanying sheet of explanatory drawmgs all the figures being transverse sections except Figures 1 and 5, Fig. 1 being an elevation of a driver having a shaft built-up according to the example shown in Fig. 2; and Fig. 5 being a part longitudinal section of the example shown in Fig. 4:.

In carrying out the invention according to the illustrative example shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the shaft comprises two semi-circular tapering portions A, B secured one on each side of a central fiat strip C tapering in breadth, and, if desired, also in thickness from the handle end downward, the flat strip lying in the built-upshaft substantially parallel with the plane of the face of the head of the club, that is, it extends from what may be termed the front of the shaft to the back thereof for the length of the shaft. The three parts are made to adhere together as hereinbefore described.

The example shown in Fig. 3 differs from that hereinbefore described only in that the strip C is in two parts in the direction of its thickness.

Figs. 4' and 5 show an example in which a tapered slot D is cut in the upper portion of the strip C in order to lessen weight, the outer end of this slot being closed by a plug E. I

According to the example shown in Fig. 6, instead of only two semi-circular tapering portions, one on each side of the fiat strip C, four tapering segments A, A B, 13, two on each side of the strip are used in building up the shaft.

In Fig. 7 an example is shown in which three tapering segments A, A A and B, B B are arranged on opposite sides of the strip C, the segments being of the triangular shape shown in cross section so that they fit into each other. 4

As will be seen in these examples, owing to one side of the flat strip facing in the direction in which the club is swung to strike the ball, that strip will bend slightly and tend to flexthe shaft as a whole during such swing and when the head of the club strikes the ball, thus enabling the player to get the best possible effect from his stroke.

According to the example shown in Fig. 8 the shaft is built up of two semi val tapering portions A, B secured one on each side of the central flat strip C. The flat strip in this example lies in the built-up shaft practically at right angles to the plane of the face of the head of the club, that is, it extends from what may be termed the forward side of the club when addressing the ball to the opposite side thereof. The completed shaft is thus oval in cross section, and, as in former known shafts of this cross section, this gives flexibility to the shaft in the direction of the swing thereof, that is, in the direction of the minor axis in cross section, and rigidity in'the direction of the plane of the lengthof the head, that is, in the direction of the major axis in cross section. Golf clubs, the shafts of which are of this oval cross section, when of the requisite weight, have hitherto been found to be too flexible in the direction of the swing of the club, and when the shafts have been made stout enough to correct this over pliability, they are too heavy or too clumsy in appearance to give satisfaction to golfers. The insertion of the flat strip, as described, in build ing up the oval shaped shaft, overcomes these objections, and a shaft is produced which, while not too heavy or clumsy, will. lies as a whole, in the direction in which the club is swung, only to the extent necessary to enable the player to get the best possible efiect from his stroke.

Fig. 9 shows an example similar to that described with reference to Fig. 6, except that, in order to lessen the flexibility obtained by using the main fiat tapering strip C, each pair of tapering segments A, A and B, B have narrow flat tapering strip C C secured between thorn, these narrow fiat strips lying at right angles to the main flat strip C when the shaft is built up.

According to the example shown in Fig. 10 flexibility in one direction and rigidity in the other is obtained by building up the shaft of four tapering segments A, A and B, B so shaped that combined with the three strips C, C the snaft is oval in cross section, and, as described with reference to the example shown in Fig. 8, the introduction of the strips make what would otherwise be either an unsatisfactory or clumsy shaft good.

Figs. ll and 12 illustrate another manner in which the object of the invention is ar rived at. If the four tapering segments A, A and B, B are so shaped that the two narrow strips (3, C made to lie at such an angle to the main bmlp G that acute anmesses gles lie in the plane of the face of the club and obtuse angles in the plane at right angles to such face, whether the shaft so built up be round as shown in Fig. 12, or oval as shown in Fig. 13, it will be suficiently flexible in the direction of the swing of the club and rigid in the opposite direction to give satisfactory results.

Fig. 13 shows an example very similar to what is described with reference to Fig. 10, except that the strips C, C C are so introduced that obtuse angles lie in the plane of the face of the club and acute angles in the striking plane.

Fig. 14 is introduced to show that the main strip U need not extend from side to side of the shaft. It may be held as shown in grooves out in the meeting faces of the two segmental portions A, B.

What We claim is 1. A built-up shaft for golf clubs C0111- prising in combination a fiat strip of wood, cane, or the like and a series of segmental sections so arranged that the shaft is flexible substantially in a plane at right angles to the plane of the face of the head and substantially rigid in a plane parallel with the face of the head.

2. A built-u shaft for golf clubs comprising in com ination a flat strip of wood, cane or the like and a series of segmental sections so arranged that the shaft is flexible substantially in a plane at right angles to the plane of the face of the head and substantially rigid in a plane parallel with the face of the head, the parts being so shaped that .the whole is tapered from the handle end thereof.

3. A built-up shaft for golf clubs cornprising in combination a tapered central flat strip of wood, cane, or the like and tapered segments on either side thereof, the flat strip lying in the built-up shaft substantially parallel with the plane of the face of the head of the club.

4. A built-11p shaft for golf clubs coroprisino' in combination a laminated tapered central fiat strip of wood, cane or the like and tapered segments on either side thereof, the fiat strip ly? in the built-up shaft substantially parallel with the plane of the face of the head of the club.

5. A built-up shaft for golf clubs corn.- prising in combination a tapered centralfiat strip of wood, cane or the like and tapered segment: on either side thereof, the flat lying in the shaft substantially parallel with- 1 p e the plane of the face of the neao. or the club,

a tapered slot in the handle end of the strip and a plug closing the upper end of the slot 6. A built-u 3 shaft for golf cluhs comprising in com ination a laminated tapered central strip of wood, caneor th like and tapered segments on either side thereof,

the flat strip lying in the shaft sub antially parallel with the plane of the face of the head of the club, a tapered slot in the handle end of the strip and a plug closing the upper end of the slot.

'7. A built-up shaft for golf clubs comprising six tapering segments arranged three on each side of a central tapering flat strip of wood, cane or the like lying in the built up shaft substantially parallel with the plane of the face of the head of the club.

8. A built-up shaft for golf clubs comprising a flat strip of wood, cane or the like extending upward from the head of the club substantially the full length of the shaft and a series of segmental sections on opposite sides thereof and combining therewith to form a tapered shaft flexible in a plane substantially at right angles to the plane of the face of the head and substantially rigid in a plane parallel with the face of the head.

9. A built-up shaft for golf clubs comprising a fiat strip of Wood, cane or the like extending upward from the head of the club substantially the full length of the shaft and lying substantially parallel to the face of the head to render the shaft substantially rigid in said plane together with segmental sections facing opposite sides of said strip and combining therewith to form a tapered shaft flexible in a plane substantially at right angles to the plane of the face of the head of the club for the purpose specified.

In testimony whereof we have signed our names to this specification, in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

JAMES PRINGLE COCHRANE. JOHN PATRICK. Witnesses:

R. FRANK HU'roHIsoN, B. A. ROBERTSON. 

